Author's note: Welcome to our first cringy one-shot! This first one is set in the nineteenth century, inspired by the society in the Anne of Green Gables series. Back then, when girls turn sixteen, they change dresses for long skirts and wear their hair above their neck. However, because of the month in which their birthdays occur, some girls start wearing long skirts before they wear their hair up. That's the case with Selene here. Also, there are some phrases in here that come from the book, which means you might not understand what they say, since it could be considered "old Canadian English". If you don't understand something, ask away, and I'll try to clarify for you!
Shoutout to kslchen from the Anne of Green Gables fandom for helping me with the background info! And remember, if you like this story or simply think it has potential to develop further, just put your thought into a comment/review, and we might make it a full-fledged story! Enjoy!
"Kaito, dear, come here for a moment, won't you?"
The boy, who had been studying at the table for school, came over and stood beside his mother in the kitchen. Mrs. Prince sighed inwardly. Time flies too fast. It seemed as if, in an instant, the baby boy she held in her arms had grown into a sixteen-year-old young man, now taller than her.
Kai cleared his throat. "Mother?"
"Right." Mrs. Prince picked up the basket she'd been arranging and handed it to her son. "The Blackburns just moved in, so I want you to take this over to them. Some baked treats that I just finished."
Kai grinned. "Do I get some?"
"They'll probably feed you, if they have any manners at all. If they don't, I'll feed you when you get back."
Kai leaned forward to kiss her cheek. "Thanks, Mother."
"Don't frighten our new neighbors!" she called after him as he made his way down the lane.
Kai's laugh drifted over. "That's for Carswell to do!" he called back.
"What did you say was for me to do?"
Kai whirled around and glared at the offender. "Carswell Thorne! Would you stop doing that?"
Carswell laughed. "Never." He eyed Kai's basket. "Where are you off to with Mrs. Prince's delicious baked treats?"
"The Blackburn's place. They just moved here, you know."
Carswell smirked. "I heard their household is entirely made up of females."
Kai groaned. "I hope I won't have to save them from your evil hands anytime soon."
"Always the knight in shining armor, huh? But back to the Blackburns. What do you know about them?"
Kai pondered for a moment. "Mother said that the father died before the girl was born, so her last name is her mother's maiden name. The Blackburns have an industry in the city, but they moved here with a widow servant and her two girls because they wanted peace and quiet for a change."
Carswell whistled. "Lots of girls. I thought it was just a rumor. How old is Miss Blackburn?"
"Fifteen, I believe."
"So, long skirts and hair done up?"
Kai shrugged. "Long skirts, probably, but I don't think her hair is done up yet. Well, here we are."
They knocked and waited, hearing the sound of hurrying feet. The door was flung open, revealing a girl almost as tall as Kai. She was wearing a cream white blouse tucked neatly into a dark green skirt. Her skin was a healthy tan, her eyes alluring brown, and her hair, which was a fine dark brown, fell in waves just past her shoulders.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I- my clothes aren't proper enough for callers." She bit her bottom lip nervously. Kai's eyes were drawn to them immediately, and he blushed when he realized what he was doing.
Fortunately, Carswell made his move next. "Carswell Thorne, seventeen years old. And I must object, miss. I do not think you underdressed."
The girl nodded. "Selene Blackburn." She looked at Kai. "Who's your friend?"
"I am Kaito Prince, pleasure to meet you, Miss Blackburn." He held out his basket. "My mother made these for you and your family."
At that moment, he noticed a small girl hiding behind Selene's skirt. He bent down. "Hi!" He flashed a her a bright smile.
The girl squeaked and dove behind Selene, who laughed, a sound that warmed Kai's chest. "This is Peony, our maid's youngest daughter." She, too, bent down next to Peony. "Do you want these nice young men to come in and have tea with us?" At Peony's nod, Selene stood back up, picked up Peony's hand, and gestured for the "nice young men" to follow her into the house.
Upon entering, they discovered idly that inside was already decorated with lovely paintings and knick-knacks. One side of the sitting room was lined with bookshelves, filled with more books than Kai could count. He looked at them longingly. His books were barely enough to fill two chests, and this family had enough for a whole wall. There were, of course, no books at the schoolhouse except for textbooks.
Selene smiled at him. "Are there any books you'd like to borrow from our shelves, Kaito? You look pretty interested."
Kai smiled softly. "Please call me Kai. And no, not yet. Perhaps I could have a closer look after tea with your permission, Miss Blackburn?"
Selene came back with plates. "You may come over at any time to borrow books. But please, call me Selene."
They proceeded to eat, and Selene was laughing at a story that Carswell was telling when a tall woman walked in. She was dressed in a fine gown, and her features were such a resemblance to Selene's that Kai had no doubt that this was Ms. Blackburn, the mistress of the house.
She smiled at Kai before turning to Selene, who had just noticed the entrance of her mother. "Selene, dear, I didn't know we were expecting guests. If you had told me ahead of time, gentlemen," she remarked with a laugh, "I would've had Selene dress fancier for you."
"That's what I said, Mother!" Selene protested. "But these two said my clothes were just fine."
Carswell shrugged. "Well, that's what the girls here wear to school, so I think it counts as presentable."
Selene frowned. "They wear this to school?"
"Yeah." Kai looked at Selene over his tea. "What were you planning on wearing?"
Selene's eyes widened before she laughed. "Sorry, I've never discussed my wardrobe with men before. But I'll go get my clothes, and maybe you can give me some suggestions." There was a tinge of pink on her cheeks as she left the room, glancing at Kai one more time.
Ms. Blackburn sat down. "Now, gentlemen, I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I am Mrs. Haddon, but since my husband died, I have reverted back to being called Ms. Blackburn." She paused. "That's why Selene's surname is also Blackburn."
As always, Carswell went first. "I am Carswell Thorne, seventeen years old, ma'am. My father is a captain in the infantry, but he visits my mother and I once in a while."
Ms. Blackburn nodded. "Do you run your farm?"
"We have hired hands that do it while I'm studying."
"Which is not often," Kai muttered.
Carswell glared at him. "I'm only a book behind you!"
"Ah, but according to what I heard, he is a year older than you, is he not?" Ms. Blackburn asked with twinkling eyes.
Kai nodded. "I'm sixteen, ma'am. My name is Kaito Prince, and my father used to be a mayor in the city before my mother fell ill when I was seven. Since then, we've been living here, and Father manages our farm."
At that moment, Selene came back with clothes, which she draped over a chair. Her choice consisted of a snowy white shirt with dark blue swirls along the row of pearl buttons. She also had a skirt, which was the same dark blue as the embroidery on her shirt. Matching swirls were done along the bottom in white.
Carswell pointed at the patterns on the shirt. "Wouldn't those be covered up by your apron?"
"Girls here wear an apron over a skirt?" Selene asked incredulously.
Kai laughed. "No, of course they don't." He smirked at Carswell. "Wait until I tell Cress and Iko of my discovery. Carswell Thorne messes up his facts on fashion!"
Carswell grimaced. "Uh, are you going to be wearing this same set every day?"
This time it was Ms. Blackburn who laughed. "Of course not, Carswell. Selene has multiple sets with the same patterns, just different colors."
Selene glared at her mother. "Even in red." She looked at Kai. "So, what do you think?"
Kai shrugged. "It's just a little fancier than what the others would wear, so it should be fine. Who made this... series for you?"
Selene beamed, and Kai was glad he asked the right question. "My step-cousin, Winter makes all of my clothes for me."
"She must be quite talented," Kai mused, tracing a finger over the pattern.
"She is. She learned from the best."
Kai looked up at the softening of Selene's voice. Their eyes met, and both looked away, blushing.
Carswell coughed, smirking at Kai. "Well, look at the time! We have to get going soon. Perhaps Selene can show you some books before we go?"
Selene stood up. "Of course." She picked up her clothes from the chair. "I'll just go and-" she caught her mother's glare "-get Pearl to put these back," she ended, sounding defeated.
A few moments later, another girl entered, dressed more plainly than Selene, but looked around fifteen as well. Her gaze lingered on Kai longer than he liked. "You called, miss?"
Her eyes continued to stay on Kai, even as Selene was instructing her on where to place each article of clothing. Selene hadn't noticed. Something in Kai wished she would notice. He tried to assure himself that it was simply because she could put a stop to the not-very-concealed glances of admiration, and nothing more.
"Kai?" Selene was looking at him, concern written all over her face. Kai had been so caught up in his musings that he hadn't noticed Pearl had left, and Selene was waiting for him to follow her to the sitting room.
He cleared his throat. "Right. Lead the way then."
"So, who's Pearl?" Kai inquired as he continued to examine the books on the shelves. He already had several in his arms, taken, of course, with readily-give permission from Selene.
Selene ran her finger along the spine of a row of books. "Adri, our maid, has two daughters. You've already met Peony, who's the younger one. Pearl is the elder one."
Kai raised his eyebrows. "One wouldn't believe that so easily. How can they be so... different?"
Selene sighed softly. "Pearl remembers a time when her family didn't serve ours."
"They weren't always your servants?"
Selene shook her head. "Mr. Linh was an inventor for Blackburn Corporations, and quite an accomplished one, too. Then, he unexpectedly fell ill, and the Linhs used all their savings from over the years for his treatment. Unfortunately, he never recovered. On top of that, Peony was born, so they were pressed even more financially than ever.
"When my mother went to visit Mr. Linh for the last time, she proposed that his family could become our servants. Mr. Linh agreed, knowing that they wouldn't go hungry as long as they were under our roof. Besides, we could help take care of Peony."
Kai frowned. "Do you... mistreat them?"
"Of course not! We give them warm food, clean clothes, and a roof over their head in exchange for their help around the house. On top of that, they get some money every month so they can get something they want for themselves. And I'm sure if they asked for a week of leave from my mother, she would let them go."
Kai's frown deepened. "Then why does Pearl treat you with contempt?"
Selene sighed again. "It's her pride, Kai. She knows she will be a servant to us until she gets married or finds a job somewhere."
Kai raised his eyebrows. "Is that why she was so interested in me? Because she's desperate to get married?"
"Perhaps." Selene laughed. "You are rather good-looking."
Kai looked to Selene in surprise. "And so are you," he said softly.
"Thank you," he heard, just as softly. Selene had ducked her head, but he could tell she was trying to hide her smile.
Kai cleared his throat. "May I accompany you to the schoolhouse for the first day of school tomorrow? I'll come by in the morning."
She smiled, a mixture of delight and shyness. "Of course, Kai. And you can walk me to school every other day too, not just tomorrow."
"So," said Thorne with a smirk, "the day you tell me you don't want to be bothered by girls anymore is the day you go and fall in love with one."
"Carswell!" Kai's ears were pink.
"Say, when's the wedding?"
"CARSWELL THORNE!"
There it is! Remember to tell us what you think!
